Home » Blog » Effectiveness » Simplifying Your Business with Occam’s Razor

Simplifying Your Business with Occam’s Razor

posted in: Effectiveness
Simplifying Your Business with Occam’s Razor

William of Occam was a 14th Century English philosopher who developed the principle that “With any problem or goal, the simplest and most direct explanation or method is usually the best and most effective.” Today we know this as Occam’s Razor. To put it simply, state your problem in the simplest terms and look for the simplest way to solve it.

Before you can start working to solve your problems, you need to distill them down to their simplest form. If the problem still feels too big, you haven’t broken it down enough. Have a fresh look at it or ask for someone else to take a shot at it for you. Once you have your clearly defined, simplified problem, you are ready to start solving it.

Occam’s Razor and Your Goals

The principle of Occam’s Razor can also be applied to any goals that have thus far eluded you in spite of your best efforts. You do this with the help of the GOSPA tool.

GOSPA

Goals Objectives Strategies Plans Actions

The GOSPA model is used by companies of all sizes to boost their productivity levels. Yours should be utilizing it too so that you can be running at your maximum efficiency.

Goals

Remember that all goals need to be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Aligned with your values, Realistic, and Time-bound. Make sure you can clearly identify each necessary component of your goal. When goals are not clear, they become complex and hard to achieve.

Objectives

As you plan out your goals, you need to establish clear objectives so that you can track your progress along the way. Think if these as mini-goals that help push you along from start to finish.

Strategies

Once you are clear about your goals and objectives, then you can outline your strategy for attaining each objective to get you to your end goal. The best strategies are easy to define, understand and execute. They are based on the skills and resources you have readily available. They are also practical, an important key to success.

Plans

Lay out a clear plan to implement your strategies. Be specific, precise and concise about the plans you make. Include deadlines and determine who will be accountable for each step. Remember that good planning increases the likelihood of success.

Actions

Once you are ready to get started, start. Don’t wait around and let that energy fizzle. Monitor the progress that is being made with each step. Stay persistent but be ready to be flexible when you encounter any obstacles.

Occam’s Razor is a valuable tool to keep in your toolkit whenever you start to feel dragged down by the slow progress you are making in your business. Stop and make a clear, simple plan to get where you need to go and you will find yourself reaching your goal sooner.

More on Effectiveness